Saturday, December 10, 2016

Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016 -- I was going to write some more about corruption -- or the appearance of it -- in the ARRL, but CQ beat me to it.

Rich Moseson, W2VU, write a spot-on editorial about an incumbent director who was being challenged by a past director in the Southeastern Division. Right after the election period for director began, the challenger was declared elected. WTF?

Well, no one knows exactly why the incumbent director was apparently disqualified -- officially anyway. But the incumbent was an advocate for greater transparency in the ARRL; this includes making board meetings open to the public (or at least streaming them for public consumption).

CQ Magazine column

Election Drama Down South

This has nothing to do with the general election, which was still two weeks away when this was written and will (hopefully) be decided by the time you read this. No, this is about the election for director in the ARRL's Southeastern Division, or rather, the non-election. In a very unusual move, the ARRL's Elections and Ethics Committee disqualified an incumbent director from seeking re-election, and what made it even more unusual was that the decision was made well after the committee granted routine approval for his candidacy and announced the election. What was not unusual was the way in which the process played out, in secret, with very little information provided to the members.

Back on August 25, the ARRL announced upcoming elections for director in the Southeastern and Rocky Mountain Divisions. In the southeast, the announcement said, "former Director Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, will attempt to regain that position from sitting Director Doug Rehman, K4AC … Ballots and candidates' statements will go out to members eligible to vote … no later than October 1, 2016, with a return deadline for completed ballots of November 18."

Then, on October 6, five days after the voting period began, the League issued the following very brief announcement: "Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, has been declared elected as Director of the ARRL Southeastern Division, to take office at noon Eastern Time on January 1, 2017."

Huh? What happened to the election? As usual in ARRL politics, there was a lot more than meets the eye going on here. Based on what we can determine — and there are conflicting accounts, of course — the board's Elections and Ethics committee voted to disqualify Rehman on the basis of actions he took following the announcement of the election, a decision that was subsequently ratified by a majority of the full board of directors. The specifics appear to be subject to interpretation, so we won't get into them here, but actually, the specifics are irrelevant in this case. What is significant is the procedure.

The cornerstone of Doug Rehman's initial campaign and of his time on the League board has been to push for greater openness and transparency in the ARRL's decision-making process, something we have been promoting for years (decades?). He even proposed making the board meetings available to members via live streaming over the internet.

What is amazing here is that the process by which Rehman was disqualified from seeking re-election proved his point about excessive secrecy in the League's decision-making process. The members in his division not only were not informed of the reasons for his disqualification, they weren't even told he'd been disqualified! Just a one-sentence announcement less than a week into supposed voting that the incumbent director's opponent had been declared elected. By whom? Certainly not the members. How? Unspecified. Why? None of your business.

When I tried to get more details, I was told it was "a personnel matter." Wrong. A League director is not an employee; a League director is an elected representative of the members. And if the board is taking the extreme step of taking away the members' right to vote for their representative, then the least it can do is provide an explanation and not hide behind "a personnel matter."

Regardless of what Rehman may or may not have done in the current situation, he is on target that the League operates with far too much secrecy. It is the only membership organization we know of that routinely prohibits members from observing board meetings, and now it has even taken away the members' right to vote in its most populous division. You might call it a denial of service. The members need to demand change now.

On a more pleasant note, all the best to all of you from all of us for a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, solstice celebration or whatever other holiday you may observe as we seek to add light to our short winter days.

– 73, Rich, W2VU

THE REST OF THE STORY. As always, there's more to the story than meets the eye. To save you some reading, I'll give you the Reader's Digest version.

Doug Rehman was elected as director of the Southeastern Division in Nov. 2013. He didn't really campaign, and the margin was just 12 votes. But still he won and was duly named winner.

In his three years as director, Rehman was something of an upstart; he didn't always play by the good-old-boy rules that have been applied to the board of directors. For example, the board always wanted to show its unity on issues by not publicly disclosing dissent among board members in the discussions on issues. Rehman lobbied for better communication with ARRL members; he sought improved transparency of the board and the ARRL's actions. He was critical of the board's moves to maintain secrecy of the board meetings, etc. He rubbed the ARRL the wrong way and challenged the status quo.

In August 2016, Rehman and the former director filed to run for director, and the ARRL's ethics and election committee certified both as qualified candidates. But the ethics and elections committee took issue with Rehman's 300-word campaign statement, as well as postings he placed on his campaign Facebook page and website. Then in Sept. 19th, he received a message that he had been disqualified as a candidate for director, and the other candidate was declared the next director.

The irony is that another director complained about some of Rehman's campaign statements because -- according to this director -- they were disparaging toward the ARRL and the board of directors. One example was Rehman's campaign statement on his QRZ.com profile page, to wit:

The election in the Southeastern Division is going to be a referendum on ARRL Board governance including ethics, transparency, accountability, and vision for the future.

Over the coming weeks I will pull the curtain back on the ARRL Board and the bleak future the League faces unless there is serious reform—reform that will only happen if the membership pays attention to whether or not they are being served by their representatives. I’ll be posting a number of motions to address issues with governance and ethics, motions that I will make at the January 2017 Board meeting if reelected.There are some good people on the Board, but far too few. In the coming weeks, I’ll give you some insight of things to look for in the purposefully cryptic Board minutes that will help you determine who the good guys are and who the institutionalized power elites are (or were).

Start taking back the League now by spreading this message to every amateur that you can!

My, my, what "disgusting" and "libelous" statements! One would almost think Rehman actually believed he had freedom of expression in the democratic election process for Southeastern director. Complaints against Rehman also include the fact he may have disclosed secret board information.

But Rehman also ruffled feathers at HQ with a couple of ethics complaints against his competitor -- you can judge the value of those complaints on your own. It doesn't look like either had much of a chance of going anywhere, but did raise some questions that deserved answers.

One of Rehman's campaign promises was to make audio recordings of board meetings, with the exception of the committee of the whole. He often wrote about the board and its need for openness. Not a bad idea.

In my terms as section manager, I got an inside look at the board politics. One of my fellow SMs in my division had some excellent contacts on the board --- contacts who were in a different division -- and thanks to him, me and the fellow SMs got daily updates each time the board met. We also learned how often our director didn't attend the full board meetings but had the assistant director fill in (he enjoyed the booze a little too much). One goal that split the board was getting rid of Dave Sumner, K1ZZ. There was never a majority of the board at the time that wanted to boot Dave at the time; by the time there was a majority, he was already planning to retire, and the board let Dave continue with his league employment until his retirement.

I have a great deal of respect for a director who wants to try to reform the system and bring membership into the loop; I wonder what would happen if half a dozen candidates for director threw their respective hats in the ring on a reform platform? As a reformer, half a dozen elected newcomers would be a significant voting bloc that could pull back the curtain on the board of directors. Its an interesting idea ... any reformers want to run for director in your division? Lets stir that pot a little! One suggestion however -- don't get too radical or the Leagues ethics & elections committee will declare ineligible!

Monday, November 28, 2016

Don't think for a minute that the ARRL and its directors are immune to playing politics; just like any other organization, there are ways to get things done, and then ways to "really" get things done.

The board meetings, for example, are often (at least in part) a dog-and-pony show for the benefit of the folks "back home." For example, it isn't uncommon for a director to propose some change in policy that he or she actually doesn't want and would not vote for. The sole purpose of some director's motions is to show those back home the director is listening to their concerns, and is taking "action" at the board level. I've even been told more than once that a director will tell the rest of the directors NOT to vote for a proposal meant simply for show.

One of the facts of life when serving as a director or vice-director is that you don't get to pick the man you will serve with -- and this means that you may wind up serving with a vice-director you despise.

I've witnessed this in my own division. The vice-director was a former director who lost earlier to the director. At the next election, the former director won the vice-director seat; as you can imagine, this set up a pretty awful scenario. The director refused to work with the vice-director -- beyond handing him a bunch of shitty tasks to do. The director and vice-director were at odds at every step; the vice-director treated the director -- the elder of the two -- with respect, but refused to take orders from him. The vice-director eventually resigned, and the director replaced him with a former SM.

I had considered running for vice director at one time, and the director told me he would be retire at some point in the near future, and he asked if I would be interested in the vice-director position. I thank him for the consideration, and told him I was. That was all baloney that was designed to encourage me to run for another term as SM. If I didn't remain SM, I wouldn't be considered for the appointment, pure and simple.

Yeah, I was gullible. The director knew what he was doing.

The next year, the director resigned within a couple of weeks of the deadline to request the nominating petition to file for director or vice director. It took some time for word to get out, and by that time, the deadline had passed. The vice director was elevated to director, and he appointed his pick for vice director. With no time to get petitions filed, the move insured there would be opposition. By a stroke of luck, one person had already filed for vice director, but the power of the incumbency ruled the day -- even if it was for a short time.

WHATS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SM AND DIRECTOR? We both wear red official ARRL badges, and are the League's only elected officials, but there's a lot of difference between what we do.

The Section Manager is responsible for managing the field programs in the section, and for making appointments in those programs. The Director appointment deals with the management and policies of the ARRL, including QST.

The director and vice director attend the board's meetings twice each year, as well as participate in other meetings as required. Directors also have a much larger territory to cover, and they are expected to attend hamfests and events in the division.

As much as I thought I wanted it, I prefer life unattached to an ARRL elective position. Maybe in the future? Who knows!?

Saturday, November 26, 2016

Friday, Nov. 25, 2016 -- About halfway through my four terms as an ARRL section manager, I realized that ARRL HQ needs to have three or four long-time section managers (SMs) write about their experiences for the benefit of the newly elected SMs who have no clue what they've stepped in.

The longtime SM of Ohio used to call the Section Manager corps "The 71 Suckers Club," which at times, is a pretty accurate summary. With that said, let me say that those who serve do so because they enjoy Amateur Radio and the benefit the League brings to ham radio as a hobby.

The League offers recently elected/appointed SMs the opportunity to travel to Newington for a weekend of SM training. It's really a good experience and I highly recommend it to anyone who serves as SM. It usually happens around October. It's a busy Friday-Sunday, with time set aside to operate W1AW as a guest, which is pretty neat. Frankly, just being at ARRL HQ is a very neat experience.

As much as people complain about HQ, the truth I found is that everyone there understands who they work for -- the ARRL membership. There's no Ivory Tower in Newington, CT. Everyone I met and talked to had a passion for Amateur Radio -- well, almost. There was a fellow who was in charge of the affiliated clubs at HQ, and he was a most unpleasant fellow who seemed to have disdain for everyone. He seemed to be the type of guy who, if you were drowning, would throw you both ends of the rope. Of anyone at HQ, I had more complaints about this one individual than all the others combined. I ended up complaining to my director about his attitude and treatment of those who contacted him about their club affiliation issues.

One of the problems was that he never clearly explained the process of affiliation to clubs who applied for affiliation. What he failed to understand was that apply for affiliation was almost always a Big Deal -- it really puts a club on the map. Clubs who gain affiliation are justifyably proud of the accomplishment. With that said, the truth is the few benefits of affiliation are seldom used by the clubs. But that's not what's important, what's important is what ARRL affiliation means to those who seek it.

The main benefit is inclusion in the League's club database, which means anyone interested in finding a club in your area will find you. Other perks exist, but none of the clubs I was associated with bothered to take full advantage of them. But back to the subject at hand -- how to be a Section Manager.

BACKSEAT DRIVING. As a new SM, one thing you learn is that there's always those who believe they know your job better than you ever will. Nothing new about that, I know, comes with the territory. And honestly, I always listened to them because there was -- if you dug deep enough -- some good take-aways. And I would rather listen to the war stories and be attentive that piss them off and make them believe you don't give a damn (even when you don't).

One of the lessons you have to learn as Section Manager is that you are more than Joe Ham, W2IOU, who is an elected presentative of the Leauge; your physical presence represents the totality of the ARRL as an organization. I was flabbergasted at the first events I attended; it meant a lot to hams in the community when I attended their event, club meeting, etc.

And the ARRL has some pretty specific guidelines for SMs, and for good reason. They too are well aware of the important role an SM plays in each state. The SM sets the tone for the entire League's programs within the section.

One of the worst experiences I had as SM had to do with former SMs in my section who went to great pains to tell me the "right way" to do what I was doing. I appreciate ideas from those who went before me, but a guy can only take so much whining, you know?

My predecessor was a pill; for about the first year, he called me from time to time to bitch about something I wasn't doing or doing the way he did. Well, thanks for the info, see you down the log, you zipperhead! I was again appreciative of his input (the first dozen times), then he was forwarding complaints from people who didn't have the gonads to call or email me directly.

One of the former SMs was a Grade A ass from the git-go. Apparently, when I was elected he had sent me congrats in an email and I had failed to respond in a timely manner. I had heard from HQ that I won, but it had yet to be officially announced, and I preferred to let the League announce it before I began to acknowledge the emails.

This former SM pitched a fit with my predecessor even before I was in office about my tardy email. He showed up at the next hamfest and stood about 20 feet away next to a wall and glared at me. I mean, he just stood there and glared at me as though I was supposed to know who the hell he was. I arrived as SM-elect to the venue prior to the current SM, and I had no clue who this creepy OM was who was giving me the evil eye. I ignored him. Once the SM arrived, the former SM called him over to his perch and told him about my faux pas; the SM came over and told me I had a problem.

What? With whom? What the hell did I do?

You failed to acknowledge the email from the old SM, Bunky. He's pissed.

Oh? My fault.

After the SM and I talked, he finally came over to where we were. The first words out of his mouth were not an introduction, but simply "You never replied to my email!"

"And you are?" I asked, which prompted a furrowed brow response at my not knowing who the hell he was. He told me his name -- Larry Loser -- which he linked immediately to a prominent Silent Key in our state who was on the executive board at ARRL HQ a bazillion years ago, and who was his best friend (before he was SK I assumed. You never know for sure about these things).

For the next couple of years, Larry spent more time bitching about me to HQ than he did ever talking to me in person or on the phone. He demanded I attend his club meeting and give a presentation; he proudly told me had visited at least one meeting of every affiliated ham club in the state "back in his day" (of course there were 9 affiliated clubs at the time).

He was on my ass about the guy I appointed to be the Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC); he didn't like him, and blah blah blah! ARES is going to hell in a handbasket! What was I thinking! For the next year he continued to spread his "positive" view of life and ham radio to me every chance he got. I did decide to replace the SEC, and Larry apparently assumed he would be on my short list. Actually, he was not -- state emergency management folks had asked to avoid giving him that appointment. I ended up appointing a Technician-class ham who had much more EM experience than ham experience to be the SEC -- a guy from Larry's county no less. Larry was livid to say the least. He raised such a stink that the director and I decided to meet go visit Larry and take him to dinner. It was a long trip for a lot of trouble; the director basically told him my decision stood.

Q: NAME THE ARRL'S TOP FIELD PROGRAM? Quick! -- Name the ARRL's most important field program.

The Official Observer program? The volunteer examiners? Technical help? The National Traffic System? Instructors?

While they are all very, very important, the most important ARRL field program is ARES.

This isn't true in every section, of course, but in mine, ARES was the program that required the greatest amount of my time and effort.

I estimate 10-15 percent of licensed amateurs are active in ARES (you don't even need to be an ARRL member to participate in ARES). Why is ARES important, you ask? Aren't these guys just wanna-be first-responders? Arent' they just going to get in the way?

They may be some of all of the above. But mostly, ARES members are volunteers who are trying to use their communication skills to work in their communities. And it was the ARES program that consumed most of my time.

And what made ARES valuable to each community was also what made it something akin to herding cats at the section level. ARES is (at least in my state) organized from the ground up. ARES groups are organized and operate as independent groups who have a fairly loose affiliation with the section ARES organization.

As state ARES leadership, we have to understand we're working with volunteers who in most cases have a better understanding of what local needs are than we do. Each ARES group must define their mission and served agency or agencies. They must develop -- and in some cases, create -- relationships with served agencies in their community.

At the state level, we cannot do that for them -- though one of the most common requests I had was for a letter from me "telling" local first-responders and/or elected officials that they should/must work with their local ARES group.

The biggest problem with ARES were the instances where well-meaning volunteers either over-promised or under-delivered their services to local agencies. In the case of a former Emergency Coordinator in my county, the poor sap ended up pissing off the EMS director, police chief and fire chiefs, who were up in arms asking the top county official to ban the guy from pestering them. He actually did ban him from working for those agencies. The episode ruined the name "ARES" in our county for more than a decade. Those of us who were ARES volunteers dropped the name but we volunteered under the local EM flag (and absolutely NO mention of ARES -- ever).

The abilities of ARES groups varied widely across the state. When you work with loosely affiliated autonomous groups, that's the nature of how things work. And early on in my Section Manager career, I realized that all of these ARES groups were working independently of one another. In many cases, they were each working to solve similar or identical problems. I saw it time and time again. My SEC wouldn't do it, but I decided to create an annual event to allow ARES groups and leaders to meet; a summit or conference to share ideas and network. It had never been done and was met with some skepticism. I talked it up for most of a year while planning it. With the help of my wife and kids, along with some local volunteers, we pulled it off and launched was became a beneficial annual event. We had forums at the event, but the most useful parts were the breaks -- when individuals had time to network.

DOWNSIDE OF GROUND-UP MANAGEMENT. As Section Manager, I was the top of the section management. I had a top-notch SEC and he had a number of assistants, and it made things run well. As we went on, ARES grew and became more efficient, but retained its ground-up focus. One of the never-completed efforts I began was to try to build a statewide ARES database of membership and capabilities -- not a very popular idea among the rank and file membership.

There was a lot of suspicions about such a database, particularly in rural parts of the state. This resistance had a long history; in fact, it damn near destroyed the program a couple dozen years earlier, according to the SEC at the time. In the wake of the near-revolution in the ARES program, he decided the best solution was to keep ARES records local, with the county EC. And that's how it had been since, which meant we had no real indicator of how many volunteers we had or their capabilities.

Did we really need such a database? You could argue that we did not. Ninety-nine percent of emergency communications work by ARES is local, most of it tactical in nature. We weren't going to build a roster or ask anyone to "deploy" somewhere. My sole intent was to get a handle on numbers and capabilities. I can't tell you how many elected officials asked how many volunteers we had, and it was at best a wild-ass guestimate.

Our volunteers would not and did not tolerate "orders" from "on high." As a result, we had to be careful about how things were worded in emails so they didn't sound like anything more than requests. I spent a good amount of time defusing incorrect assumptions about the intent and tone of emails inside the ARES program.

Other states had quasi-professional ARES groups with official recognition. We would never reach that level in my state, particularly if it required background checks. Most members would have walked had background checks been a requirement.

But background checks would have been appropriate, and would have weeded out some bad apples who caused us some embarrasment. One ARES official was arrested on child porn charges under my watch. He had prior arrests that would have cued us in to a possible issue in the future. A background check would have also identified a convicted sex offender who wound up receiving a high-level ARES appointment.

I had to strip the man of his appointment, and send his EC and DEC a letter about it. His DEC called me about it, just about to bite my head off. I finally had to explain the complete nature of his past offenses. The DEC went to the man to ask if any of it was true; every bit of it was true. It was a bitter pill for all of us to swallow because the man was a good volunteer in an area that lacked volunteers. I had no real choice; I had checked with HQ about this but already knew what I would be required to do.ARES: A PAPER TIGER? There's a percentage of people involved in ARES who are glory-seekers; they want the official title, an official badge. They want to volunteer, but they also want to be see as saviors via ham radio. The percentage is small, but they can make life difficult for the rest of us who only want to volunteer to help our communities. But memories are a lasting thing ... there are local governments who "still " remember the crap caused by a well-meaning ham, and who want nothing to do with ham radio because of it.

ARES varies from state to state and county to county. If I were to do it all over again, I would turn ARES over completely to the SEC. I spent too much time on it. Is it important? Yeah, it is. But ARES ended up consuming completely my enjoyment of ham radio, and that ended up not being much fun anymore.BURNOUT OR BURNED UP? At the time my final term as Section Manager ended, I was mostly a ham in name only. My only radio activity was the state ARES and traffic nets. No contests, no rag chews. This isn't an uncommon occurrence among SMs I found. Seems that in many cases, the longer you serve, the less time you spend on the air. Funny how that works.

So yeah, all I have to do is recount my years in office and I'm even more certain I will not throw my hat in the ring for any ARRL election in the near or distant future.

Thursday, November 24, 2016

Nov. 24, 2016 -- Whilst considering where this blog is going to go, I felt compelled to return tonight to recount some of my on-the-job training as a newly elected ARRL Section Manager.

First, I was fortunate that the outgoing SM supported my run for office; the damn truth is that the other candidate was an OM (emphasis on the "O") who was already well known for memory lapses during his advancing years. He had held the office 20 years earlier, and while I didn't remember his term, I was told numerous times it was one of tremendous inactivity on his part. He's a Silent Key now, enough said.

The outgoing OM said he would chose not to vote as to vote for the other candidates, which showed me that in his eyes, I was apparently better than nothing. In the voting I beat the other candidate handily. Little did I know what I was in for (my on-the-job "training" will be the subject of subsequent entries).

Sometime during my first couple of terms as SM I had a run-in with a director outside my division. My division director was a stodgy bastard who was as disagreeable as the day is long. I came to think I must have reminded him of a son-in-law he hated, as he was always acted like a bag o' douche when it came to his interactions with me.

I never understood what the hell his issue was; as I eventually learned, there's no shortage of hateful old farts among the Amateur Radio rank and file.

Fast forward to a past Straight Key Night. If you haven't operated this event before, it is a non-contest event that celebrates the use of manual keys -- straight keys, bugs, sideswipers, etc. No electronic keyers allowed. Over the years, SKN also has become a celebration of "old school" Amateur Radio, with classic rigs of the past fired up for a blast from the past. You haven't lived until you the distinctive sound of a classic transmitter on the air.

I have always loved SKN; in fact, I spend most of the operating time copying the mail of stations with the most interesting sounding CW notes.

HEATHKIT AT-1 CHIRP: RIG MALFUNCTION OR VINTAGE 'CHARACTER'? This one particular SKN, I got a phone call from my director regarding a notice that one of my Official Observers mailed out to an op running a Heathkit DX-Chirpy. The OO notice mentioned that the OM's rig had substantial chirp, and advised the OM he might want to look at it. The OO had no idea what sort of transmitter the guy was running; he probably wasn't aware of the SKN operating event; the man's rig had a chirp issue.

Well, the OM who received the notice was best buddies with Reginal Q. Blowhard, the longtime division director of the Eastern Asshole division. The OM was pissed that he had received an OO card -- though he admitted he knew the rig had a chirp issue. Most old Heathkits do, you know. For an OO who was raised on solid-state, phase-lock loop transceivers, chirp isn't something so common these days. And let's keep in mind that an OO notice is just an advisory; it isn't a notice of violation or a fine -- its just to let you know (in the event you aren't aware of it) that your rig has chirp.

Nothing more; nothing less.

Now the OM's ego has been bruised, he appeals to Director Blowhard to intervene. As was the good (?) director's practice, he pushed the throttle of his asinine inclinations clear to the firewall. He bypassed my director, and appealed to ARRL HQ and its Field Organization folks. He expressed his outrage and horror over the fact his friend and esteemed colleague was targeted for character assassination by one of my Official Observers who dared to send him an advisory alleging the rig he admitted had chirp actually had a chirpy signal. How dare he!?

Director Blowhard demanded -- not asked, but demanded -- that the head of the HQ OO group

intercept the OO notice (to prevent it from being stored in the ARRL archives and dredged up in the future and employed as a weapon to embarrass his family and descendants -- none of who will know what the hell a chirpy signal is or give a damn about it), destory said notice, and force the offending OO to issue the man an apology for doing the job required of him as a volunteer Official Observer. I can only guess that ARRL policy forbade having him drawn and quartered due to budget limitations.

God bless the Field organization OO program director, who was one of the most level-headed men I ever met. As it turns out, the ARRL HQ folks have to deal with the inflated egos of division directors on a regular basis, and as a longtime HQ employee, he was well versed in handling these things. HQ's OO director agreed to destroy the OO's advisory, which pleased Dir. Blowhard to no end (he should have known that OO advisories are held for a year then destroyed anyway ... the only reason they are held at all is in the event of a repeat offender who may require a referral of a matter to the FCC. Fortunately for us fans of vintage ham gear, chirp isn't generally a federal offense).

The OO program manager sent an apology of sorts to the the director's friend (something I would not have approved had I a voice in the matter), and told everyone it was a "learning opportunity." Well, the lesson here was simple -- don't send an OO advisory to the friends of a sitting division director.

All of the proceedings happened between the director and HQ; neither me nor my division director had any say or input. It was a sad example of how someone with too much power can bully an organization to do something it shouldn't have to. The event became an example of the adage about shit rolling downhill. Director Blowhard's bullying (and my director's decision to not get involved) forced the League into an action that insulted the years of hard work and dedicated service from this particular OO. He felt shit on (and rightfully so), and he never participated as an OO again, despite my repeated invitations and my reappointments.

When I later brought it up with my division director, he basically said that Blowhard was his friend and ally, and he wasn't going to oppose him, despite the loss to my state's OO program.

EPILOGUE. This blog isn't about trashing the ARRL or those who serve as paid staff, volunteers, etc. With any membership organization, stupid crap happens at levels that can't be stopped by us peons at lower levels (aka the Field Organization). I find it incredibly sad and stupid for how a director's ego pushed a good volunteer to leave because of an OO advisory hurt the feelings of a ham who was operating a rig he knew to be chirpy. Director Blowhard eventually retired. Personally, I'm glad his ass is gone. Bye, Felicia.

Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 24, 2016 -- I'm due to check in on a CW net on 80 shortly, provided my belly full of turkey doesn't get in the way (or the tryptophan doesn't lull me to sleep).

My self-imposed deadline rapidly approaches ... which prompts you to say to your self, "Self, what the hell is this OM talking about?" Pull up a chair while I grab a couple of 807s from the icebox, Bunky, lets talk.

It goes back nearly two decades ... I was a [more] youthful and active ham at the time, and wanted to get involved in our national organization, the ARRL. I had been a member for years in order to support the its activities and its defense of our bands and frequencies -- despite the stupid things the League has done over the years (can you say "incentive licensing," neighbor?).

My volunteerism with Dah League began with with a low-level position in my state Section Manager's cabinet. I eventually moved up to other cabinet positions. Then as my SM "boss" was completing his third two-year term, he told me he was not seeking a fourth term. It was just as well.

His personal life had spilled over into his Amateur Radio life to the point where everytime he spoke about the League and the hobby, it was going to Hell in a handbasket. Changes to the code requirement spelled the death knell for the hobby, he said. Every hamfest forum message seemed to preach the same message: "Abandon all hope ye who value Amateur Radio, the End is near."

At some point in his final year, I had all the negative shit about Amateur Radio that I could take; I decided to throw my hat in the ring for Section Manager.

My decade of experience as SM is what exactly this blog is about. Every two years when the filing deadline nears, I find myself entertaining the thought of throwing my hat in the ring for another term as SM. After I dislodge the iron skillet my wife clangs up side my head at the mention of serving as SM again, I carefully rethink those thoughts, given my wife's skill with said cast iron implements, hi!

I have to run but will return. Keep that 807 handy OM, its gonna be an interesting ride.